Share This

Preschool teachers' use of sophisticated vocabulary and analytic talk about books combined with early support for literacy in the home can predict fourth-grade reading comprehension and word recognition, new research from Vanderbilt University's Peabody College finds.

Related Articles

The findings, published in Child Development and included in a review article in the August 19, 2011 edition of Science, present evidence that there are lasting, complex and mutually reinforcing effects that flow from strong early childhood classrooms.

"We need to take very seriously the importance of teaching language in the preschool years," said David Dickinson, author of the study and professor of education. "It's easy to look at tangible accomplishments such as counting or letter recognition but much harder to measure richness of vocabulary and language ability. Parents should take a careful look at what is happening in their kids' preschool classrooms and see if the teacher is engaging the child in conversations that are rich in language." This latest research, co-authored by Michelle Porche of Wellesley College, reports results of a longitudinal study which examined in detail language experiences of children from low-income homes when they were in preschool. The authors sought to identify influences of these early experiences on children's language and literacy at the end of kindergarten and again in fourth grade.

Preschool teachers were audio and videotaped, teachers were interviewed and classrooms were observed for their support of language and literacy. Children were individually assessed, and parents were interviewed to learn about their education level and income and any family practices which foster language and literacy.

Although the sample was small, the researchers found robust relations between early classroom support for language and later language and reading ability.

One preschool teacher behavior which predicted children's growth was the frequency of sophisticated vocabulary use during informal conversations. Such exposure predicted children's kindergarten vocabulary, which correlated with fourth grade word reading. Teachers' use of sophisticated vocabulary also correlated with children's kindergarten print ability, and through that word reading skill, the early vocabulary exposure indirectly affected grade four reading comprehension.

Group book reading in preschool also had long-term associations with later reading. Conversations which included analysis of stories and discussion of words and teacher corrections of incorrect responses predicted receptive vocabulary at the end of kindergarten. This enhanced vocabulary ability was associated with better vocabulary in fourth grade. Also, preschool teachers' efforts to hold a child's attention was related to fourth grade comprehension skills.

"While raising the level of interaction in group activities is important, some of my stronger results in this study are seen from informal interactions between teacher and child, showing the importance of elevated language during times such as play and lunch," he said.

He says parents should carefully examine the nature of interactions happening at their child's preschool to see if teachers are engaged in conversations that will stretch language and knowledge.

Dickinson noted in recent years preschool has become more of an academic setting, where previously the focus was primarily on socialization and kids' adjustment to groups.

The authors also found long-term effects of the home, as children whose parents reported providing more support for early literacy had stronger vocabulary scores in fourth grade. Finally, the structural complexity of children's language at age three was associated with fourth grade vocabulary.

Dickinson reviewed research on preschool interventions in the August 19, 2011 edition of Science and examined the role of adult support for language and challenges preschool interventions face when seeking to foster language growth.

Dickinson will begin working with Nashville, Tenn., preschool programs in August 2011 to develop an approach that can help provide teachers with skills to effectively build language among their students. Specifically, he will examine how teachers can use discussions surrounding book reading in combination with teacher support for dramatic play to build language abilities.

More From ScienceDaily

More Mind & Brain News

Featured Research

Mar. 3, 2015 — The literary great Marcel Proust wore ear-stoppers because he was unable to filter out irrelevant noise -- and lined his bedroom with cork to attenuate sound. Now new research suggests why the ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Attendance at schools exposed to high levels of traffic-related air pollution is linked to slower cognitive development among 7- to 10-year-old children in Barcelona, according to a new ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — No significant change in home habits of smokers have been observed in the aftermath of a ban on smoking in public spaces, researchers report. Greater inspiration to kick the habit likely comes from ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Heart function has been associated with the development of dementia and Alzheimer's disease through a new study. Participants with decreased heart function, measured by cardiac index, were two to ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Children of recently separated or divorced families are likelier to drink sugar-sweetened beverages than children in families where the parents are married, putting them at higher risk for obesity ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Although sedatives are often administered before surgery, a randomized trial finds that among patients undergoing elective surgery under general anesthesia, receiving the sedative lorazepam before ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Why do people shake hands? A new study suggests one of the reasons for this ancient custom may be to check out each other's odors. Even if we are not consciously aware of this, handshaking may ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — It appears that stress markers in unemployed people can be found, independent of smoking, alcohol consumption and overweight/obesity. Results from a study suggest that long-term unemployment may be ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — On the heels of an American nationwide measles outbreak comes a report that campaigns aimed at scaring people about the consequences of non-vaccination might not be as effective as many think. ... full story

Mar. 3, 2015 — Doctors write millions of prescriptions a year for drugs to calm the behavior of people with Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. But non-drug approaches actually work better, and carry ... full story

Related Stories

Jan. 23, 2015 — Family members, teachers and peers can play different roles in shaping Spanish-speaking children's school readiness and English skills that are vital to children's academic success, ... full story

Oct. 6, 2011 — Continued participation in the Harrisburg Preschool Program has led fifth-grade students to score higher on Pennsylvania System of School Assessment literacy and math tests than peers who have not ... full story

Aug. 2, 2010 — Effective reading requires recognizing words and also understanding what they mean. Between 7-10 percent of children have specific reading-comprehension difficulties. These children can read text ... full story

ScienceDaily features breaking news and videos about the latest discoveries in health, technology, the environment, and more -- from major news services and leading universities, scientific journals, and research organizations.